Birmingham council leader John Clancy has joined forces with the bosses of Britain’s other great cities - to warn quitting the European Union would damage local economies and put jobs at risk.

Ten city leaders issued a joint statement saying that working people would “pay the price” if the UK voted to leave the EU in the referendum on June 23.

And Coun Clancy (Lab) told the Mail: “Leaving the European Union poses a grave risk to the local economies of our cities and to the jobs and livelihoods of people all across the North.

“If we vote to leave, we can expect to pay the price in rising unemployment, trade barriers for our businesses, even deeper cuts to public spending, less money coming in from foreign investors or the EU directly, and a major hit to the car industry that supports so many jobs across the midlands.

“But if we vote to remain, the Midlands will flourish.”

Council leaders and mayors representing Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Newcastle, as well as Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Nottingham and Sheffield, signed the declaration along with Coun Clancy.

In a joint open letter, they said: “A vote for Remain is a vote for prosperity and progress for Britain’s cities. A vote to leave is a vote for serious economic danger. It is simply not worth the risk.”

The council leaders insisted: “Across our ten cities and their surrounding regions, EU membership has created 63,000 jobs and protected another 16,800. It has provided £1.8bn of investment to help grow our urban economies, including vital infrastructure from tram lines to trunk roads.

“Together, our urban areas already deliver more than half the UK economy, and it is obvious to us that the economic fortunes of our great cities and the millions of people who live in them are closely linked to the future of the Continent and its cities.

“It is helping to transform our cities’ transport networks, making it easier and quicker to get to work.

“EU Membership is giving our cities unrivalled access to European expertise and networks, helping us to create cleaner, greener places.”

Britain’s cities needed to work with partners across the globe, they said.

“These are global challenges of connection and cooperation. We cannot hope to meet them by becoming detached and disengaged.

“For us the choice is clear. If our cities are to continue to grow and prosper, we must remain a member of the European Union.”